Baked strawberry cake

Hello dears! Well somehow I don’t seem to be able to update my blog with new recipes as often as I would like so this one took some time. But I will try my best to post at least something every month. Summer here actually starts today but I can’t see much of it. It is raining for the last days, it’s cold and windy and feels more like fall. Not really the summer I was looking for. Well I guess I am kind of spoiled after the amazing weather in California. What can I say I miss California with its sunny blue skies and nice sugary beaches. Sigh…will I ever return there. Let’s see what future holds in for us. Now coming to today’s recipes. This cake is very simple and came together as I had lots of strawberries at home and wanted to make a cake. Usually strawberries are not baked in a cake but rather distributed fresh on top of soft yellow cake but I was in mood for some twist to that. The strawberry puree gives the batter a nice colour and the cake turned out very fluffy and moist. I didn’t add so much sugar to the cake as I didn’t want to overpower the sweetness of the strawberries. If you prefer your cake sweeter you can add more sugar. Have a nice day!!!

Ingredients:

- ½ cup sugar
- 1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- pinch salt
- 1 cup strawberry puree ( made from fresh strawberries )
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tsp. baking powder
- ½ Tsp. baking soda
- 1 Tsp. vanilla essence
- handful fresh strawberries

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 F / 180 C and grease a 9-inch round cake form.
In a large bowl beat the sugar and oil till creamy, then add the eggs, one at a time and mix. Add in vanilla essence and mix. In another bowl combine flour, baking powder and soda and salt. Add the mixture alternately with the strawberry puree until combined. Fill the batter into the cake form and then distribute the fresh strawberries on top. Bake for about one hour. Let cool on a wire rack. Text and photographs are copyright protected. Copyright © Masalaflavour.blogspot.com 2009-2011. All rights reserved.

Anda ki curry - Egg curry

It’s been a very very long time that I have posted a recipe here and let me tell you I feel quite bad about it. There have been many big changes and troubles in the past year that prevented me from updating my blog. Many times we found ourselves in a hopeless situation without knowing what to do and where to go. It would make a very long post to tell you everything that happened but in brief we are no longer in the US. After our trip to India we were not able to return and don’t also know yet if we will ever go back. In late summer last year we shifted to Germany and had to move a couple of times back and forth till finally finding a nice apartment last month. We are still dealing with picking up the pieces from our life in the US and it will still take some time to get back to where we were. Slowly I am also getting back to cooking and now also back to blogging. Let me tell you I have missed it a lot and hope I can be regular now.
Coming to today’s recipe - Egg curry. I first tasted this dish in the US many years ago when I wasn’t yet married. S. was living with roommates from South India and on one of my visits to their apartment one of them made this incredible tasty egg curry. Unfortunately I never asked him for the recipe. I have since then tried to make this dish couple of times till I finally came close to the one I tasted so long ago. It’s actually very easy to make so I am sharing this recipe today with you and hope you will like it.
Have a wonderful day…!!!

Serves 2-3.

Ingredients:

- 4 hardboiled eggs
- about 2 cups of pureed tomatoes
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or use a garlic press
- 1-inch piece ginger, finely grated
- 5-6 curry leaves
- 1 Tsp. black mustard seeds
- ½ Tsp. turmeric
- 2-3 black cardamom pods
- Red chilli powder totaste
- Salt to taste
- 2 Tbsp. oil

In a spice grinder grind:
- 2 Tsp. cumin seeds
- 4 cloves
- 1 Tsp. coriander seeds
- ½ Tsp. fennel seeds
- ½ Tsp. fenugreek seeds
- 1 Tbsp. sesame seeds
- ½ cinnamon stick

Method:

In a large pan heat the oil and add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the onions and cardamom. Fry on medium heat until onions turn translucent, then add the garlic, ginger and curry leaves. Fry one more minute, then add the tomato puree, salt and spice powders. Let it simmer on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. Cut the eggs in halves and add to the curry. Simmer for 2 minutes and take off heat. Serve with rice or chapattis.
Text and photographs are copyright protected. Copyright © Masalaflavour.blogspot.com 2009-2011. All rights reserved.

Prayers for Japan

This first post after a long absence from the blogging world is a very sad one. I am deeply saddened by the disaster in Japan and this goes out to all the Japanese people. Our thoughts and prayers are with you! May the people who have lost their lives or lost their loved ones find peace...

Text and photographs are copyright protected. Copyright © Masalaflavour.blogspot.com 2009-2011. All rights reserved.

Dear all!

It`s been a long time since my last post and even today I can`t post a new recipes as I am currently in India. Also I wasn`t able to reach blogspot for a long time. There seemed to be some problem. I`ve been away from home since March and was supposed to be back in the US by now, but things have taken a different turn, so I will be here a little longer. I promise to update my blog soon again and post a new nice recipe. It will be Indian of course :-). So hope you are all well and doing good. Have a nice day!!!

Text and photographs are copyright protected. Copyright © Masalaflavour.blogspot.com 2009-2010. All rights reserved.

Spinach-tomato farfalle with pine nuts

Hey all! I hope you are doing well. It has been some time since my last post, as I somehow didn’t cook things which would have been worth posting. But I am trying many new dishes right now and will be hopefully able to update my blog more regular.
The recipe today is very quick to make and comes in handy if you don’t have a lot of time to cook. Spinach, tomatoes and pine nuts are a great and healthy combination, so enjoy! Wishing you all a wonderful day!!

Ingredients:

- 1 packet farfalle pasta
- about 1 lb fresh spinach, washed and dried
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 3 cups strained tomatoes
- 1 Tbsp. Olive oil
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- 2 Tbsp. Mascarpone
- ½ cup water
- Coarse sea salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste

Method:

Boil pasta according to packet directions and drain.
In the mean time toast pine nuts in a skillet until golden-brown and set aside. Heat olive oil in a large pan and add onions. Fry until translucent, then add garlic and fry for 2-3 more minutes. Add strained tomatoes and water. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 5-10 minutes. Add mascarpone, salt and black pepper. Mix well and cook for couple more minutes. Add spinach and wait until wilted. Add pine nuts, mix and serve with some freshly ground parmesan.

Text and photographs are copyright protected. Copyright © Masalaflavour.blogspot.com 2009-2010. All rights reserved.